New campaign gives travelers golf tips and guilt-free equipment worth up to $1,300

ATLANTA- Feeling guilty about spending your “green on the green” because of the recession? Through its new marketing campaign featuring the world’s leading golf instructor David Leadbetter, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts lets travelers drive away leisure-spending guilt with its “Get a Better Game” promotion.

Between now and Aug. 19, 2009, guests who stay at Crowne Plaza hotels can earn free room nights and new premium Callaway Golf® equipment worth up to $1,300 as well as discounts on golf fees at courses across the country. Crowne Plaza will also help business travelers and golfers lower their handicap with expert golfing tips from Leadbetter, which will be showcased through clever commercials that launch today and run through early August 2009.

“Even though we’re facing a tough economy, we can’t stop looking for ways to do the things we love. Through our new marketing campaign, we want to make it easier for our guests who golf to enjoy the game without feeling guilty about every dollar they spend on non-essentials,” said Gina LaBarre, vice president, Brand Management, Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts.

“Through our relationship with David and Callaway Golf, we’re able to build further awareness for Crowne Plaza hotels among golf enthusiasts and business travelers alike.”

This year’s integrated marketing campaign is an extension of the brand’s first national television advertising campaign which was launched in April 2007 and continued in 2008.

“Get a Better Game” Ad Campaign

Created by Fallon of Minneapolis, Crowne Plaza’s 2009 ad campaign focuses on rewarding guests with the very latest Callaway Golf equipment. In a series of three,
30-second TV spots, David Leadbetter, the legendary golf guru who has taught both professionals and amateurs how to “get a better game,” uses his expert golf tips from a Crowne Plaza hotel, an unlikely golf green.

Crowne Plaza “How to Get a Better Game” Tips

* Tip #1: How to play out of the rough...by way of room service roughage
* Tip #2: How to hit a ball out of water...inside a hotel bathroom
* Tip # 3: How to hit a low bullet driver...down a hotel corridor

“Through all my years instructing golf, this was the very first occasion I carried out a drill inside of a hotel,” said Leadbetter. “It was quite amusing yet the most creative ad campaign I’ve been a part of; it really was rather clever.”

The “Get a Better Game” marketing campaign is also supported via print and online ads in top golf media outlets and through hotel collateral such as key packets, key cards and front desk staff buttons, all designed to drive awareness of the brand’s affiliation with golf. The new marketing campaign closely aligns with the brand’s third year as the title sponsor of the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial golf tournament, which takes place in Fort Worth, Texas, May 25-31 this year.

The Promotion

Between April 27 and Aug. 19, 2009, Crowne Plaza guests can start earning toward free room nights and Callaway Golf equipment on the very first night’s stay. The more nights stayed during the promotional period, the more guests will earn! Hotel nights do not need to be consecutive and all qualifying rates apply.

Promotion participants who stay at Crowne Plaza hotels will receive a sleeve of Callaway Golf Tour ix golf balls via mail approximately three weeks after check out. All other prizes will be rewarded 3-5 weeks after the guests’ qualifying stay. Guests who pay with any American Express® Card can earn 1,000 bonus Priority Club points per night, up to 25,000 points, equal to one room night at a Crowne Plaza hotel.

Check In. Tee Off.

Also during the promotion period, Crowne Plaza guests get up to 20 percent off green fees and club rental discounts at nearby golf courses* when they stay at participating Crowne Plaza® hotels across the U.S. Markets with golf courses may vary.